Jwalamukhi Fair Dates

Jwalamukhi Fair in 2013 »
1 June

Category: Fair Celebrated In: India Celebrated By: (Hindu)

The Jwalamukhi fair is also held twice a year during the Navratri of Chaitra and Assiy. The devotees go round the 'Jwala Kund' in which the sacred fire burns, making their offerings. Nearby is 'Gorakh Tibbi' a centre of the Gorakhpanthi Naths. The Holi fair of Sujanpur is different from the Holi celebrations elsewhere. Folk-dances, songs plays, wrestling matches and athletics are some of the attractions of the fair.

People come with red silken flags (dhwaja) to greet the Mother Goddess, JwalaJi. The fair is attributed to the worship of that Eternal Flame which is coming out of earth spontaneously and perpetually. One of the 51 Shaktipeeths of India, the temple of Jwalamukhi is in Jwalamukhi town, which is about 70 kilometers from Dharamsala. Jwalamukhi is a famous temple of Goddess Jwalamukhi, the deity of flaming mouth, believed to be the manifestation of the Goddess Sati. The building is modern with a gilt dome and pinnacles, and possesses a beautiful folding door of silver plates. The Devi appears in the form of nine different flames. The principal one is believed to be Mahakali. The other eight flames at different places in the temple represent the following Goddesses Annapurna.
temple affairs were guided and supervised by the princely state of Nadaun. In 1809, Maharaja Ranjit Singh visited the temple and after dyeing his hand in saffron, stamped an agreement in the temple premises with Raja Sansar Chand-the local ruler. Later after tasting success in the Afghan war, Maharaja Ranjit Singh gilded the roof of the Jwalamukhi temple as a thanksgiving. His son Kharak Singh presented to the temple a pair of silver-plated folding doors.